I've been a family physician in Moncton, N.B., since 1989. Through my family practice, I have close to 2,500 patients. In Moncton, family physicians also take care of their patients while in hospital, so I get up quite early in the morning to do rounds at the hospital before spending a full day at the office. I often have to return to the hospital to check on my sicker patients at the end of the day.

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With regular 12- to 14-hour workdays, I'm kept very busy, particularly with the medical and legal paperwork that is required. This takes time away from my personal devotions and church community, so I try to keep disciplined in strengthening my faith.

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I've always wanted to help people. My grandfather was a traditional Chinese doctor in China, and my mother encouraged me to pursue a career in the health-care profession.

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I grew up in Hong Kong, but immigrated to Canada in 1974 when I was 16. Our first Canadian home was in Sydney, N.S., and I experienced a little bit of culture shock when I arrived in this land of opportunity.

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I met my wife, Arlene, while we were both studying at Dalhousie University in Halifax. During our university years, we did not attend church regularly. After we were married and had children, we felt it was important for them to have a church background. My wife came from a Salvation Army background, so we went to an Army church.

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I attend Moncton Citadel Community Church. My involvement at church was limited at first, as I was more focused on my professional life than on spiritual matters. After a spiritual awakening at a local men's camp in 1998, I became more involved with the spiritual side of church. I've been on the corps council off and on for the past 10 years, and I'm a member of the pastoral care committee, helping to disciple some of the newer members of the church. I also organize a monthly men's fellowship breakfast. I'm also the “parish doctor” for a good number of our congregation.

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My first overseas experience was a mission trip to Zimbabwe. My daughter was attending Memorial University of Newfoundland in St. John's and decided to join a Salvation Army team travelling to Tshelanyemba Hospital. For five years I had felt the Holy Spirit calling me to do something like this, so when God provided this opportunity, I decided to volunteer as well. It was a spiritually fulfilling time for me. I was under the mentorship of Major (Dr.) Dawn Howse, who was a missionary doctor at Tshelanyemba for many years. Although of a small stature, she is truly a “giant” in the missionary field! I learned a lot from her.

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I planned to return to Zimbabwe, but when the earthquake hit Haiti, the Holy Spirit challenged me to offer my services to support the Army's relief work there. I spent two-and-a-half weeks serving in Haiti at the local Salvation Army compound in Petit-Goâve. I was touched by the strength of the people, the depth of their faith and their ability to cling to hope, even in the worst conditions.

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I met a single mother whose only child was in her last year of medical school in Port-au-Prince. It was obvious that the woman was not very well off, so she probably had to sacrifice everything to get her daughter through university. Unfortunately her daughter was one of the many medical students killed when the campus collapsed. We shared some tears, and she said that she would be OK. She and her daughter were both Christians and she says she knows they will meet again in Heaven.

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As I grow stronger in my faith, this makes it easier for me to carry out my work. As patients face crises such as cancer, death or marriage breakdowns, it can be difficult knowing what to say or do to help them. In many cases, medicine alone is not enough. I've become more at ease in sharing my faith, and I can instill hope in hopeless situations. I also leave Bibles and encouraging tracts in the waiting area. When appropriate, I take time to pray with my patients, particularly in stressful moments. Without my faith, I would have burned out a long time ago.

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In this Witness series, John McAlister, Senior Editor, interviews Salvationists from across the territory about their families, work, faith and involvement with The Salvation Army.